AMP3 TAKEN OUT?: Indie music site creator and indie musician Michael Sharp started AMP3.com for musicians, who could post their indie MP3 tracks, and get paid everytime someone downloads the files. Michael's idea was to include short audio commercials within the free music any visitor to the site could download, with the advertisers paying based on the number of audio commercials downloaded. Michael would share those proceeds with the musicians that posted to the site. Musicians get paid, the site makes money, the advertisers are happily lining up, and music fans get free music - what a great idea! Problem was, the company originally approached by Michael to design the software based on his idea, Houston InterWeb Design, Inc., refused the job, then changed their mind, developed the software anyway, after which HIWD CEO Harry White called Michael back and offered to host and maintain the site. Then, after running up a huge bill that AMP3.com refused to pay, Haryy claimed the site was his idea, and that he was patenting the concept, and Michael should hand over the site to him.
In the meantime, you can visit the site, but you can't download any free music. How long before 20,000 visitors a day so elsewhere? See you in court, boys.
JOERECORDS.COM IS SEEKING MUSIC: joerecords.com, an interesting site run by a group of very interesting artists, is seeking compilations, unusual, weird, hard-to-find, ethnic and world music. If you are interested in submitting, you can send some tracks to 4047 49th SW, Seattle, Washington, 98116, or email katehart@speakeasy.org.
MUSICMATCH: MusicMatch Jukebox, the MP3 organization software 3 times more popular than RealJukebox, has finally released a MAC version of it's up-til-now Windows-only program. Now Mac users can also organize, find, play and create their own CD-quality MP3s and Windows media audio files using their software package. The program, available in free or PLUS paid versions (using the Real Player model), can be downloaded from http://www.MusicMatch.com/.
OUT-NAPSTER THE INDUSTRY: With the RIAA and the music industry currently doing all they can to shut down the whole free MP3 thing (with MP3.com and NAPSTER.com on the ropes in court), another alternative has been spawned by free thinkers out on the Internet. In true online form two user community-based sites have another way to fight the power - large, loose network sites consisting of thousands of free files, accessed anonymously, spead out on hundreds of servers throughout the Internet. The sites, Gnutella (http://gnutella.wego.com), and FreeNet (http://freenet.sourceforge.net), encourage users to share files, network and communicate freely, including up-to-date postings on the news surrounding this entire debate. Sites based on this type of architecture are impossible to "shut down," since they don't exist in one place. More dust refusing to settle...
EMUSIC GIVEWAY: EMusic.com announced a new promotion for MP3 consumers: purchase $50 worth of downloadable music from www.emusic.com will receive a free 32MB Creative Labs NOMAD II portable digital audio hardware player free (worth $229.99). The player can hold up to an hour of MP3 files, and provides a great incentive to try actually paying for a few MP3 tracks for a change - atleast $50 worth.
IUMA A&R FILES: The Internet Underground Music Archive (IUMA) has been around for a while, longe than almost any other indie music site, and keep changing as they grow. Starting as a pay-for-page site, moving to a free you-upload-we-post site, and even being the first to institute a promotion that pays bands and artists that receive the most downloads (before MP3.com and othes), they have now launch of the "IUMA A&R Files" (http://www.iuma.com/industry) a rich-media industry tip sheet circulated to over 1,500 A&R representatives, managers, publishers, radio stations and record labels. The A&R Files highlight six to ten emerging IUMA artists each month in a variety of music genres, selected by the IUMA A&R team, who weigh both the artist’s IUMA chart status and the current music styles in demand by partner labels.
The resource, already being read and used widely in the industry, is the start of the sites' move to build out industry services aggressively over the next several months, focusing on developing tools and relationships to effectively allow labels to search and research emerging talent. "Many emerging artist sites direct artists to avoid the industry and concentrate on connecting exclusively with fans," said Antony Brydon, general manager of IUMA. "We believe that message serves those sites well, but does a disservice to the artists. Most IUMA artists understand that good label and industry partners can be critical to the development and success of an artist, and our services encourage and support those goals."
TRANSPARENT MUSIC: Herbie Hancock, producer David Passick and former Verve Records president Chuck Mitchell have formed a new multimedia company called Transparent Music (www.transparentmusic.com). The label, who's first releases will include CDs by Herbie Hancock (what a suprise!), Soul Conversation abd Beckly, Lamm and Wilson, features a Shockwave-driven audio player on the first (and currently only page) of their site that very effectuively gives listeners a way to immediately hear some high-quality music. The label will focus in AAA pop/rock, world music, adult R&B and contemporary jazz, and although it's impossible to guage these new companies by one web page, it will be interesting to see how this develops.
BANDGURU: Mark Bliesener has been a musician, rock critic, publicist and personal manager for artists and bands including Lyle Lovett, Big Head Todd & The Monsters and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. With 16 Gold and Platinum records to his credit (from the artists he has worked with), he has taken his knowledge online with BANDGURU.com, a music consulting site for bands, independent labels, musicians and the people who work with them. He sells his expertise at $100/hr, payable by credit card, to use online, by phone or in person (if you arrange to go to him). The site lists references, a bio, past and present clients, etc., and includes a great links page for musicians who want to learn a bit on their own.
NEW LA BAND ONLINE NETWORK?: Seth from That Fat Frog (www.thatfatfrog.com) recently emailed me about a proposed network of LA-based bands that gig in town and have teir own, regularly updated websites. The plan is for LA bands and clubs to work together, through their websites, to help cross-promote, review and inform about local Southern California bands and clubs. Sounds good to me - if this sounds like you, email Seth at PFASeth@aol.com nd let him know you might want to get involved.
COMMENTARY: soundbreak.comRecently featured in this article, soundbreak.com ("the interactive online music experience") has been spending a lot of real money on some real advertising. For a while I have spotted their small billboard ads around town (the one about a musician joining soundbreak.com so he can "be discovered, sell out and make lots of money"). Not that this ad isn't cute enough (speak for yourself, buddy), but along comes the latest ad from the site, pulled from a recent LA Weekly:"Please help make my band so successful that we can eventually choke to death on our own vomit, face down on the bathroom floor of some swanky hotel." I find this ad truly insulting on so many levels, and it's hard to know where to start. Suffice to say, at risk of stooping to their level, that as a real musician (and not some smart-alec copy writer) I would like to remind whoever wrote this ad they can find some swanky hotel any time and get it over with. Why wait for the slim chance that any of us actually have of being that successful. |
© 2000 Music Connection Magazine.